It’s that time of year — the sun is out (most of the time), the weather is warming up, and you finally have a reason to roll the grill that has been gathering dust since last year out into your backyard or onto your fire escape (tsk tsk).Perhaps you are a natural, making your own marinades and twirling your tongs like a pro. But then again, maybe not. Read on for 10 solutions to common burger grilling mistakes and become the backyard chef you have always dreamed of being.

Daisy Nichols / The Daily Meal

10 Ways You’ve Been Cooking Backyard Burgers All Wrong

You’re Encouraging Flare-Ups

Sure it may impress your guests to see you casually cook burgers amid bursts of flame, but it isn’t doing your burgers any good. Encouraging flames is essentially encouraging an acrid charcoal flavor, which definitely won’t impress your friends once they bite into your burgers.